“Some call the LA fashion scene a distant second to NY, but after a year here we know that’s not the case. We want to prove it by finding those amazing gems in the rough and helping them get their brands off the ground!” – Melanie Bender, Partner, Post + Beam

Back in 2009, DMD Lab provided thousands in free fashion PR services through an emerging designer competition. Now back as Post + Beam, the agency that secured coverage for winning designers in The NY Times, Vogue, InStyle and placed pieces on Cameron Diaz, Blake Lively and Jessica Alba, are seeking their next opportunity in Los Angeles. The contest winner will receive a six-month full-service PR contract, including positioning and press kit development, print and online media relations and celebrity and stylist seeding.

This time around Post + Beam is throwing a party and making use of the social technology that has emerged in the last 2 years. On Friday March 18 from 4-5:30 at the Market Restaurant in LA’s Cooper Building, emerging local designers will enter the contest live by uploading a few shots of their work and a quick bio through the Post + Beam Facebook application. Anyone attending the party or logged on to Facebook can browse through the entries and ‘thumbs up’ or comment on any designer. The live entry and voting, which will take place using iPads came from a desire to “do something really fun, getting the local fashion industry involved and bringing a personal experience aspect to the contest,” explains Bender.

The changing fashion PR landscape also contributed to the name change. Bender explains that the new name evokes “innovation + communication, [we want to] change how our brands tackle make-or-break issues like connecting with consumers across emerging platforms, creating a special brand image and experience, and making the label accessible while maintaining that sense of exclusivity.”

Why does giving out free PR make sense for DMD? Bender explains, “on both a business and personal level it’s about making innovation in fashion thrive! It’s an incredibly tough market out there for new brands, and a lot of the time the designers with the most interesting and exciting points-of-view are missing the deep pockets or marketing muscle to get their labels of the ground. We want to be calling attention to the newest and brightest talents in the industry so they can keep creating for seasons to come. This is a really fun way to do that, and of course we get the added pleasure working with some amazingly talented designers.”

What do you think about Post + Beam’s approach? And do let us know if you attend, enter or vote on March 18!

About This Author

Known as the “fashion publicist’s most powerful accessory,” (San Diego Union-Tribune) and the “West Coast ‘It’ girl of fashion PR,” (YFS Magazine) Crosby Noricks put fashion public relations on the digital map when she launched PR Couture in 2006. She is the author of Ready to Launch: The PR Couture Guide to Breaking into Fashion PR, available on Amazon.

A decade later, Crosby is a successful fashion marketing strategist who spends her time championing PR Couture’s growth and mentoring fashion publicists through her signature online course PRISM. Learn more about opportunities to work directly with Crosby at her website crosbynoricks.com